Retained MAG Assets Form 5ME

On July 29, Fives (Paris) completed the acquisition of MAG Americas (Erlanger, KY). With the acquisition, Fives became one of the global leaders in high-precision machine tools, used to manufacture large complex equipment and high-performance composite processing machines.

On that same day, a new company, 5ME, was formed out of the three business units that MAG Americas did not sell. They are part of a larger vision President Horwarth has for the new company to become an industry leader in providing total productivity and efficiency solutions to manufacturers of all sizes.

The three legs of the new 5ME business include:

Cryogenics. 5ME’s unique multipatented cryogenic machining process is a breakthrough technology that enables higher cutting speeds for increased material removal and longer tool life by transmitting liquid nitrogen at -321°F (-196°C) through the spindle/turret and tool body, direct to the cutting edge. The process promises a variety of environmental, production and cost benefits. The technology was instrumental in achieving cost-reduction goals for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

Software Solutions for manufacturing and maintenance excellence. Freedom eWARE, a suite of software focused on manufacturing efficiency that integrates seamlessly into production and business systems, provides full transparency into manufacturing processes such as asset utilization, performance, quality, OEE, in addition to machine health, process health, and energy consumption.

With the sale of the MAG machinery units, 5ME services and products pledge to be “brand agnostic,” allowing solutions to be applied to all types of machinery and manufacturing systems. 5ME derives its name from the five critical “M” components it aims to address—man, material, machines, methods and metrics—to improve a manufacturing enterprise’s efficiency (the “E”).

Pete Tecos, 5ME’s Executive Vice President for Marketing and Product Strategy, said that the non-machinery part of MAG that was not sold to Fives was growing in strategic importance.

“Our side of the business was not as visible as MAG’s machinery business, but we are well known to leaders such as Caterpillar, Lockheed Martin and others,” Tecos said. “Our eLOG software, for example, has made Caterpillar’s manufacturing assets, and its production potential, completely transparent in real time to all levels of management, complete with performance metrics.”

The new 5ME company has management operations in Cincinnati, where it is headquartered, and Detroit. Detroit is also home to 5ME’s 40,000 ft2 (3716 m2) technology center, showcasing its breakthrough capabilities in cryogenic machining, tooling/fixturing, process development, asset monitoring and enterprise software, as well as embedded assistance.